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tv   The Last Word With Lawrence O Donnell  MSNBC  August 22, 2017 10:00pm-11:00pm PDT

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senate committees, we've had news about the 10 hours herself closed door senate testimony from the founder of the firm of the trump russia >> good evening, rachel. i've learned so much in your hour. first of all that people in phoenix are called phonicians. which the mayor of phoenix said on your show. i did not know that. >> nor did i. >> inspector general's report,
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rachel, i remember when this story first came out, the second secretary in effect, picks up the phone, threaten et lisa murkowski over the health care vote with resources in his department. immediately i started saying, wait a minute, there are legal issues around that. i know everyone thinks that's wait it works, but it is not the way it works and there are legal prohibitions against doing that kind of thing and here we have tonight inspector general of that department looking into exactly that. >> yeah. and it is a very interesting legal question and political question, because ryan zinke is in the cabinet and what he did is not really contested. just a matter of whether or not it is policeable. we had barbara mcquaid here who brought up that incident saying that's an example of, not of a criminal obstruction of justice or something. that's an example of what we call log rolling. that's the sort of thing that
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happens in politics. that said, inspector general is looking at it as an edge licks all of these things are a close read and another scandal for the trump administration. >> there is an ethics dimension and there are criminal lines here drawn here, things you cannot do or say in the pursuit of congressional votes. >> right. >> that is exactly what is being investigated. >> yeah. then the complicated factor that president may or may not have the ability to fire a pesky. this one's got legs. >> thank you, rachel. >> thanks, lawrence. >> you are watching live video of the phoenix convention center in phoenix, arizona. that's the vice president. president trump is scheduled to speak at any moment at the campaign rally there for his 2020 reelection campaign. that's right.
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you are watching a trump 2020 campaign event. seven months after donald trump was inaugurated as president of the united states. the trump campaign is paying for tonight's event. the president will be joined at the rally as you see with vice president mike pence and beside him ben carson. the only african-american member of the trump cabinet. this campaign rally comes exactly one week after president trump sparked outrage by equating nazi white supremacists with people protesting white supremacists. if the president has any comments of that tonight we will go to that live. there have been rumors swirling around the white house that president would use this event in phoenix to publicly pardon former sheriff. a white house spokesperson said no action will be taken on that front at any point today. in reaction to that, joe said he isn't going to do it, he said
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tonight. joe has been convicted of criminal contempt in court for willfully violating federal injunction barring him from doing immigration roundups that targeted hispanics. we will cut to the president's speech live if he talks about the joe arpaio case or if the president adds anything to the speech about what he gave last night which he calls his new strategy that is condemned today by many trump supporters because of the exact opposite as what he said as a candidate. he said last night that his first instinct is to pull out all from afghanistan but his generals that he once said he was smarter than convinced him to stay the course and stay in afghanistan and continue doing what his predecessors in the white house have done. the trump administration is expected to increase troop levels in afghanistan but refuse to announce when they would do that.
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that refusal to actual specify what the troop levels will be or when they will go up is the only innovation that donald trump has brought to afghanistan policy. total secrecy. as to how many american lives are being put at risk in afghanistan is the uniquely trumpian element of the administration's afghan strategy. democratic mayor of phoenix asked president trump ton come to his city. republican governor deucy and john mccain and jeff flake are not attending the trump event. that is unprecedented treatment after visiting president by the senior members of his own party in a state. the president attacked mccain repeatedly, know recently for not voting to repeal obamacare.
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new york times reports that president trump is feuding with mitch mcconnell and that they have not spoken in weeks. mitch mcconnell authorized a super pac ad attacking senator jeff flake's primary challenger. thereby setting up another point of conflict with president trump. last week, trump tweeted, great to see that dr. kelly ward is running against flake, jeff flake, who is weak trump. last week, trump tweeted, great to see that dr. kelly ward is running against flake, jeff flake, who is weak on borders, crime, and a nonfactor in the senate. he's toxic, exclamation point. today's ad by mitch mcconnell attacking challenger calls her kelly because she supported the moisture trail sometimes visible from jet engines in the sky is filled with chemicals that the federal government is willfully dumping on the people of america. it is a debunk et conspiracy
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theory that kelly ward considered in the past. >> trail kelly has her head in the clouds. she bizarrely blamed john mccain for isis. >> john mccain is directly responsible for the rise of isis. >> yet dangerously calls for restraint in fighting them. >> what is your response to isis? >> restraint and realism. >> now after losing bigly to john mccain, trail kelly said he should resign to she could be senator. >> we will go to the president if he speaks of any of that.
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we see president trump taking the stage there, clapping either for the crowd or himself. we will listen to the beginning of his remarks when he gets there. tonight's story in the new york times about the president having an angry conversation with senator mitch mcconnell saying that in fact the way the times reports it, complaining about the senate leaders refusal to protect him from investigations of russian interference. the question raised in rachel's last hour, is that obstruction of justice? >> attempted obstruction of justice. if this investigation is such a witch hunt as president trump claims he has been busy trying to round up war locks to help him. he has this bitter phone call with mitch mcconnell. let's remember the timing. that is reported to be august 9th. days after mcconnell did something extraordinary, which you p talked about on this show, not putting senate into august
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recess but a rolling recess so trump con remove sessions, put in recess appointment and fire bob mueller. and that timing of that call just after mcconnell blocked to replace sessions is very interesting to me. there is no doubt that donald trump, he is upset about health care, taxes, infrastructure, he has one thing on his mind and that is protecting himself in the russia investigation. >> david, the report says he was in the phone call with mr. mcconnell yelling and cursing about the health care bill but much more animated and much more angry about the russia investigation conducted by two he is not rate committees. >> well donald is very, very vulnerable about it and he knows this. need to cut in? >> david, let's listen to the president's remarks. we will come back to you soon.
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[ cheers and applause ] >> even just so you know, from the secret service, there aren't too many people outside protesting. okay? that i can tell you. a lot of people in here. a lot of people pouring in right now. they can get them in. whatever can you do, fire marshal, we'll appreciate it. i want to thank our great vice president, mike peps, for the introduction. as well as my friend, dr. ben carson.peps, for the
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introduction. and thank you to a very, very special man, franklin gram, reverend franklin gram. for leading us in prayer. and thank you to the niece of the great martin luther king, junior. it shows you that america is indeed a nation of faith. we know that. i'm thrilled to be back in phoenix in the great state of arizona. where so many thousandis of hardworking american patriots. i would love if the cameras could show this crowd, because it is rather incredible. it is incredible. [ cheers and applause ]
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>> okay. we're back to the cameras show the crowd piece of a trump speech. this is all very familiar territory. we're monitoring the speech. and we will go to it if he raises anything that is within the news of the day. so david k. johnston, this report says that the president was yelling, swearing at the senate majority leader, for not controlling the senate investigations of donald trump's campaign and his involvement with russia. >> well, that may, as was pointed out, may well be a criminal offense because it may have been, depending on the exact words, an effort to interfere with an investigation by congress. but i think that event and what we just saw are all connected. trump knows he is in deep trouble. he knows he is highly highly vulnerable in the investigation of russia. and he signalled that to us without a question bp so holding
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a campaign rally for 2020 is part of an effort to make sure if things go badly for him, he will have people out there in the streets who will be acting on his behalf and who will be disrupting our democracy. central thing about donald trump is donald is about donald. he is about himself and nothing else. >> there is a politics story at the heart of this new york times story. that is donald trump attacking incumbent republican senators like jeff flake trying to knock them off in primaries. mitch mcconnell and other republicans believe if you do that, that opens up a very good chance for the democrat in arizona to possibly take that seat and that's the argument, that's where the argument is joined politically. donald trump apparently not worried about that. >> i got to tell you. i want to step back and take a larger look.
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i do campaigns for a living. to have a president a couple months into his first term out doing campaign rallies is just unbelievable to me. right? and a couple different things. why is secretary ben carson there? did he just need a black prop there? because of the charlottesville? just bizarre things going on. we have talked about for years now the tea party and republican civil war that was brewing. and you know with boehner and cantor. and apparently those were just minor skirmishes, right? right now you have a sitting republican president and a rather red state although teetering red state who has openly gone to war with both republican senators there. and has basically endorsed one of the republican senators you know challenge her in primary where senate majority leader
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mitch mcconnell is spending money to protect his republican incumbent. this is bull's run. if the tea party is a skirmish, this is full on civil war. this is fascinating. something i don't think we have seen in modern times. >> new york times report ends with a quote from billy piper, former mcconnell chief of staff. and it is a stunning quote. it says quote the quickest way for him to get impeached is for trump to knock off jeff flake and dean heller and be faced with democrat-led senate said billy piper lobbiest and former mcconnell chief of staff. that's not just a political comment. that comment implies that there is impeachable evidence that would be brought up by a democratic senate that will not be brought out by a republican senate. implicit in that statement is the possibility that indeed the republicans in the senate are
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helping to cover up what's really going on in the trump investigation. >> that's right, lawrence. i hope the president enjoys his rally in arizona. because if his administration continues on this path, it will have to have future rallies at prison and we have the secretary of interior under investigation. as cornel mentioned, ben carson is there tonight. what about the hat shack in prohibiting people and the president and vice president from engaging in certain kinds of political activity. rachel discussed this investigation surrounding carl icahn, former regulatory adviser. the legal problems around the trump administration are piling up at rapid speed. right now mitch mcconnell and republicans in the senate are protecting donald trump. but if he continues it down the path he is on, i don't think that will continue. and as for the idea that trump is really upset about health care he attacked jeff flake who voted with him on health care. he is going after jeff flake not
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because of health care. he is going after jeff flake because flake said he want it hold trump accountable for his wrongdoing. like david k. johnson said, donald trump sp in this only to protect donald trump. >> i want to read you this report tonight. it says, during the call which mr. trump initiated on august 9 from his new jersey golf club the president accused mr. mcconnell of bungling the health care issue. he was more animate bed what he intermated what the senator's refusal to protect him from investigation of russian interference in 2016 election. here is the sourcing, according to republicans he briefed on the conversation. and david, that is saying that there are some republicans who know about this conversation. each of them becomes of investigative interest to the special prosecutor who will no doubt want to hear from mitch mcconnell and want it to hear
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from him under oath about this phone call and want to know who mitch mcconnell told about this phone call and who else might have been listening to this phone call while it was going on. i think ron can confirm to us it would not be terribly unusual in the senate majority leaders office to have a staff person or someone else hearing the leaders end of a presidential phone call. >> right. i would thurry expect that at least one of the persons listening to take notes on this call. and having been on the other end after few of donald out of control phone calls, i can imagine how that conversation went. i think the important issue about this story is clearly mcconnell either wanted the story out or he didn't object to it because clearly the people were free to talk to the times about this. that should send a signal to donald. the problem is he is not
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sophisticated enough to get the signal. so this -- i really do think this is a very important story. when you add in the zinke development and the development about kyle icahn, because what happens is if we have someone who isn't technically a federal employee, which may be the case with icahn, but they act as if they are, does our legal system have a way it effectively take care of that. >> corn el, david just mentioned who feels like team mcconnell sourcing on this new york times report. there is another intriguing possibility about the source ing of this. this is one of the first big bomb shells to come out in the routine we are used to with the new york times and washington post. first big one to come out since steve bannon was kicked out of the white house. and he could easily have information about that phone call. >> he certainly could. and i think that -- the president is on a slippery slope here. and particularly on a slippery slope because his line of
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defense and are of senate republicans, right? and he is not making it easy for he is not rate republicans. i think it is important for us to understand what senator corker did, right? senator corker came out and said he is not sure the president has the stability or competence to be successful. senator corker is from a state, tennessee, where donald trump won with 61%. right? so when you have senators from deep red places coming out against the president like that, there can be a problem. >> all right. we will dip into the president's comments live at this point. let's listen to this. >> so the, and i mean truly dishonest people in the media and fake media. they make up sources. they say a source has, and there is no such thing, but they don't report the facts. just like they don't want to
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report that i spoke out forcefully against hatred, bigotry and violence. and strongly condemned the neo-nazis. the white supremacists and kkk. i openly called for unity, healing and love. and they know it because they were all there. so what i did -- [ cheers and applause ] so what i did i thought i would take just a second, because you know where my heart is, okay? i'm really doing this to show you how damn dishonest these people are. so here is my first statement when i heard about charlottesville. and i have a home in charlottesville. a lot of people don't know.
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here is the first, can't believe they haven't figured that one out yet. now they know. now they finally know. but i just -- i don't want to bore you with this. but it shows you how dishonest they are. most of you know this anyway. here is what i said really fast, here is what i said on saturday. we're closely following the terrible event unfolding in charlottesville, virginia. this is me speaking. we condemn in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence. that's me speaking. on saturday. right after the event. so i'm condemning the strongest possible terms. egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence. they had it on initially but then when they talk, he he didn't say it fast enough. he didn't do it on time. why did it take a day? he must be a racist.
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it took a day. [ crowd booing ] >> dishonest people. so here is -- here is me. i hope they are showing how many people are in this room. but they won't. they don't even do that. the only time they show the crowds is when there's a disruptor or anarchist. believe me, we have plenty of anarchists. they don't want it talk about the to talk about the anarchists. this is me, it has no place, i'm talking about bigotry, hatred and violence. there is no place for it. what is need said a swift law and order and protection of innocent lives. no citizen should ever fear for their safety and security in our society and no child should ever be afraid to go outside and play
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or be with their parents and be a good time. this is me speaking. here is further. this is on saturday. the first one. i did this three times. we have to come together as americans with love for the nation. and true affection. really. and i say this so strongly. true affection for each other. i didn't say true affection for you and you. i said for each other. all of us. all of us. all of us. [ applause ] but they don't report it. they don't -- they just let it go. above all else we must remember this truth no matter our color, creed, religion or political party, we are all-americans first. we love our country. we love our god. we love our flag.
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>> we should point out that president is misquoting himself. he keeps saying, this is me speaking. he did not quote the part where he said the blame goes to many, many sides. >> this my first segment. and they said, remember, they said well, he wasn't specific enough. why wasn't he more specific? so my second statement i got really specific. and they said, why didn't he do it faster? i'm telling you, folks, look, i know these people probably better than anybody. a lot of people have a problem with it. because look, what happens with them, if they are doing a story about me, i know if it is hon et or false. >> this is the president lying about the media. he is telling his audience that the media lies about him.
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the president just quoted his remarks on saturday after charlottesville and he falsely quoted his remarks. he said on that saturday, we condemn in the strongest most possible terms this egregious display of hatred bigotry and violence on many sides. on many sides. he repeated that twice. he did not include that just now in his quoting of himself to this audience. he is lying to this audience about what he said and he is lying to this audience about what the media said about what he said. let's go back to the president. >> cnn is really bad. but abc this morning, i don't watch it much. but i'm watching in the morning. and they have little george stephanopoulos talking to nikki haley. little george.
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and he talks about the speech i made last night, which believe it or not got great reviews, right? they add hard time. they were having a hard time because it was with soldiers. we were somber. we were truthful. and it really did. so he talked about it for like that much. then said, let's get back to charlotteville. and nikki was great. she is doing a great job, by the way. so now i say we have to heal our wounds and wounds of our country. i love the people of our country. all of the people. it says i love all of the people of our country. i didn't say i love you because you're black or i love you because you're white. or i love you because you're from japan. or you're from china. or you're from kenya. or you're from scotland or sweden.
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i love all the people of our country. [ applause ] so i said -- by the way, folks, this is my exact words. i love all of the people of the country. we are going to make america great again but we're going to make it great for all of the people of the united states of america. [ cheers and applause ] then they say, is he a racist? is he a racist? then i did a second one. so then i did a second one. don't bother, it is only a single voice. not a very powerful voice.
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how did he get in here? he is supposed to be with the few people outside. how about all week they are talking about the massive crowds that are going to be outside. where are they? well, it's hot out. it is hot. i think it's too warm. they show up in helmets and black mask answers they've got clubs and they've got everything. so on august 14th, that was it, and i said all people i love all people, everything, right? now i figure, i'm going to do it
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again. i'll be even more specific. so i said, based on the events that took place over the last weekend in charlottesville, i would like to provide the nation with an update. that was right after the event, the first one, right? an update on ongoing federal response to the horrific attack and violence witnessed by everybody. to anyone who acted criminally in this week weekend's racist violence you will be held fully accountable. justice will be delivered. that's what i said. listen to that. i said that. but they don't show that. they don't show it. they talk -- they will take one thing like seriously, he was late was the best thing. he was late. so i said to anyone who acted criminally at this weekend's racist violence. then i go, we must love each other. show affection for each other. and unite everything in condemnation of hatred, bigotry and violence. we must rediscover the bonds of
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love and loyalty. bring us together as americans, right? then i said, racism is evil. did they report that i said that racism is evil? you know why? because they are very dishonest people. now i said racism is evil. they only choose a sent sentence here or there. they put lightweights all around a table and all say what a bad guy i am. then you wonder why cnn is doing relatively poorly in the ratings. because they put seven people all negative -- >> i want to bring in cornel and get his reaction from this. we heard the president say when he quoted himself about his comments in charlottesville, he repeatedly said to his audience, this is me speaking an this is
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me speaking. he was reading from the written remarks prepared for him on that saturday. and he left out the part where he said, on many sides. on that saturday he actually referred to what happened in charlottesville as this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides, on many sides. those were the key words that were objective to, the president lied to his audience tonight refusing to mention those words to his audience tonight and invepting objectionet that news media and others had about his speech and that's just a pure lie about what he said on saturday. >> hey, lawrence. this may be some of the most weirdest ever uttered by a president, sitting president of the united states, as he rambles on. whether you're democrat or republican, you see presidents
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talking about vision and the country and talk about what they are trying to do for the country. this president rambled on for several minutes talking about only himself, right? don't take my language from it but the republican senator collins said the president failed at his moral obligation around charlottesville. right? he is giving a weak and nod to neo-nazis and white nationalists, right? and it is awfully -- awfully divisive. here is a real frightening part, lawrence. is that yes he is lying. and he is lying shows people that rally and not going to make a bit of difference, right? the core of his supporters and you see him polling right now, core of his supporters are not moving off of him. no matter how outrageous an act he does in the white house or how it whatever he does in a white house is sort of
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embarrasses this country. his core supporters and he said, i could stand in the middle of times square and shoot someone and i wouldn't lose support. for better or worse, his core supporters are not moving away from him. >> i said earlier we wouldn't go to the speech live because there is so much twasted time in the trump speech where he is congratulating himself for things. other big problem with going to a trump speech live is the extent he is willing to lie an lie directly to a television audience or we have a responsibility monitor what is being delivered to that audience. the president tonight falsely quoting himself. lying about what he said in the immediate aftermath of charlottesville. can be taken as an admission that the president knows that it was wrong for him to say on many sides, on many sides. which he said twice. on saturday. and which he refuses to night to admit that he said.
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and that would, to me, read as an admission that donald trump knows that he should not have said on many sides. because he dare not quote himself tonight having said that. >> yeah, lawrence, he also said that the people marching with the nazis were very good people. he is not bringing that up either. but his inability to quote what he said shows a lack of accountability. it may be true that his core base is sticking with him but i thinks his poll numbers are dropping because folks in the middle are disappointed and saddened. i've been here for democratic and republican presidents. i disagree with them. but president eats their best speak to the suffering of others. heather hayes lost her life. we haven't heard him talk about her tonight. that's not president bl
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leadership. that's just man raging at the television set and that's what we hearing tonight. >> good point. heather heyer's name hasn't been mention ped. and what donald trump, talking about something he feels sorry for himself about because of the way the news media covered it and we covered it accurately and covered what he said which he is now tonight afraid of seeing what he actually said the first time. >> and i will just jump in at this last point here, i don't think any of us, no matter how partisan we are, could imagine that no representative from a bush white house or obama white house, that no one would have been at that young lady's funeral.
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>> thank you for staying with us into overtime tonight. >> thanks for having me. >> let's go back and pick up more of what the president is saying. see if there is something worth following here. >> i was a bet are student than they were. i live in a bigger more beautiful apartment. and i live in the white house too, which is really great. >> clearly there is nothing worth following in what he is talking about now. let's go back. i think we have already the piece of video from just earlier this these remarks where he lied very clearly lied about what he said on the day that heather heyer was killed in charlottesville. let's listen to this. >> we condemn in the strongest possible terms, this egregious display of hay trid, bigotry, and violence. that's me speaking on saturday.t so i'm condemning the strongest
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possible times egregious display of bigotry, hatred and violence. they had it on initially but then when they talk, he didn't say it fast enough. he didn't do it on time. why did it take a day? he must be a racist. it took a day. >> and that is pure donald trump lying. here are the words he left out. he said, we condemn in the strongest possible terms the egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides. on many sides. he very specifically left those words out. immediately after cutting those words out, he said to his audience, this is me speaking. he promised his audience these are the real words he spoke that day. that was a lie. he then lied about what news media reaction was. the news media reaction was all
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to that phrase on many sides. almost all of the reaction was about the phrase, on many sides. he invented some other reaction from the news media and critics that never happened. and let's go back to that original statement that he actually made about charlottesville that the day that it happened. the day that heather heyer was murdered. let's listen to him talking about on many sides. the words he is afraid to use tonight. he is afraid to quote himself accurately tonight. let's listen to this. >> we're closely following the terrible events unfolding in charlottesville, virginia. we condemn in the strongest possible terms, this egregious display of hatreding with bigotry and violence on many sides. >> we are joined now about james fellows joining the discussion of national correspondent for the atlantic.
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former speechwriter for jimmy carter p. this is as deplorable a lie as can you imagine a president telling on live television to an audience. >> it is. and i'm thinking back, it was only 24 hours ago. many were saying we are seeing the new trump. he was sober under control. kelly shaking them down as chief of staff. this is back to the trump we've seen before. also i want to suggest the possibility either that was a flatout intentional lie or else there is always the possibility that donald trump, you know, he thinks it's true now. there is always this kind of glee, he is excited to see what is there and add libs text as if he had not seen it before. libs i can imagine that he thinks he is telling what happened. that's the way he is performing for the audience right now.
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>> you know the mind of donald trump bet are than the rest of us. did he delivery cut out those words or has he erased them from what is left of his mind. >> may have erased them from his mind. but in this talk he repeatedly said things designed to not unite people. he talked about the anti-fascists. people outside. apparently someone was ejected. i don't have a few of the picture. he called them anarchists when we in our constitution enshrined the right in the first amendment. he said if you don't believe in god you're not part of this country. he sid a whole series of statements that are not only a lie by the omission he told but also divide people. what he is trying to do is stir up more trouble because donald sees that as benefiting him. >> ron, donald trump is a
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frustrated lawyer. he is subject to the powers of lawyers in civil cases he lost so many times. like trump university case where he lost $25 million. and doing tonight that device, that good lawyers can do, which is that you know, pull the piece of paper out of the pocket. in trial practice it is a deposition or previous statement under oath. and you read this previous statement and you prove the case by reading the previous statement. here he pulls out the previous statement and makes himself a liar, outright liar, by reading what he claims is his previous statement and it isn't. and he convicts himself on live national television of lying. >> if he is a frustrated lawyer, he be a very bad one if he were a lawyer. of course in any court if you would try to pull this, they
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would read back the record and he would be held in contempt and he would lose his license. think there is another tell in his speech tonight, lawrence. when he talked about his speech last night, praising himself for his speech last night, saying we were truthful. which is an odd way for a president to praise his own remarks. as if it were an extraordinary event that he was truthful. i don't buy the theory that he doesn't know he is lying. i think he is a very conscious liar, he has done it all through the campaign and now more people are on to it and he is being called out on it. as you are doing here tonight and you should do. i think that's the undoing of donald trump's leadership of the country. >> dr. fall yoes, i did take your diagnosis to be a very positive one. sounded to me like a reading of mental illness in the patient that his mind actually does not contain what used to be there. >> of course, none of us on the
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panel is a medical professional, starting with me. my dad was there fallos. we can't do it at arm's length. but there is a long record of whether donald trump is sort of in the moment thinks whatever he is saying. we know there's an impolite term for this. the initials are bs'ing that i won't go into. there are more and more signs that whether or not this is appealing to the crowd in phoenix or the crowd he will turn out in west virginia or any place else. the republican party of mcconnell and corker and others are deciding how long they will stay with him. they have to look at this performance and think is this the ship we want to lab our fortunes in the long run. >> joined now by mary lynn, executive director of national immigration law center. there was some rumor very hot
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rumors going that sheriff joe are a /- joe arpaio would get pardon. that didn't happen. but sheriff arpaio has hopes it would happen. >> thanks for the invitation, lawrence. i think the conversation tonight is a reminder we are in a moment in history in which we are all being called on to decide and whether the question about which side are you on. this president made very clear both with his inability to denounce white supremacist in charlottesville then quickly talk about the possibility of pardon sheriff arpaio. he has been convicted of racial profiling.
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contempt of court. and the fact that trump considers him a great sheriff -- >> i'm sorry. he is talking about joe arpaio now. let's listen to this. >> do the people in this room like sheriff joe?
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>> remind the audience that sheriff joe arpaio is convicted of a federal crime. that's who they are alauding. >> was sheriff joe convicted for doing his job?plauding. he should have had a jury. but you know what? i will make a prediction. i think he will be just fine, okay? but, but, i won't do it tonight because i don't want to cause any controversy. is that okay? all right? but sheriff joe can feel good. the people of arizona know that the deadly and heart breaking
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consequences of illegal immigration. the lost lives, drugs, gangs. >> there we have basically a public promise by president trump that he will pardon sheriff joe arpaio who has been convicted of federal crimes in relation to his illegal attempts to enforce immigration laws. >> lawrence, this is completely reprehensible. he can omit his words and not say what he said last week. and in his heart does stand with white supremacists and the fact he is saying that sheriff joe has been convicted for doing his job rather than really calling out the truth which is sheriff joe has terrorized entire communities in mara copa county simply because of the color of their skin. simply because they speak english with an accent. because their sir name is like mine. this is the real trump.
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he is standing shoulder to shoulder and stands convicted under the laws of the united states. rather than go to arizona and pardon the people convicted by sheriff joe like young immigrants with docka that he terrorized and put in jail, we see a president that is saying be i'm going to pardon you but not publicly tonight because i don't want the controversy. >> telling the world that in the united states of america you get convicted of federal crimes for doing injury yob. your job. >> as said before, it is irreprehensible. we should call him ex sheriff joe. because president jump loves to return of the voters. the voters voted joe arpaio out of office. they were tired of his illegal a outrages. while the people in the hall
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tonight the trump supporters may be cheering for him he lost with the voters in addition to doing illegal acts. i think it's important to remember that donald trump, once again, isn't speaking for the american people. he isn't speaking for the broad main stream. he is speaking for and to a very narrow segment of popular opinion. >> joining our discussion jennifer reuben a conservative opinion writer at the "washington post". jennifer i wanted your reaction to the president defending himself and defending what he said in his first reaction to what happened in charlottesville by quoting himself to this audience tonight and lying about what he said when he quoted himself to this audience. >> this is pathetic. he of course revealed himself once again to be a liar. but understand the context in which it comes. 24 hours ago he was announcing to the country he was sending more young men and women to die in afghanistan. and 24 hours later this is what
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he is doing, complaining about the media, he is creating racial divisiveness. he is walking arm in arm with a man convicted not oem of racial profiling but of obstruction of justice. this is the most astounding really pathetic performance we've seen from him yet. if you have to edit your own remarks and air brush your own remarks out doesn't that say you made a mistake the first time .. the entire tenor is so unpresidential so distasteful. he is coming across like a bitter losing candidate not like the president of the united states who just ordered more men and women into war. >> james fallows you've done much reporting in depth on our military readiness, up close with our troops and there he was -- tlfrs the president yesterday last night some 24 hours ago speaking to an audience of current military at an army base
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outside of washington, and beginning a military announcement with a rather long description of american society and what he hopes for american society. this is clearly material written for him. and he read off the teleprompter in a pretty robotic way. this is all about racial harmony. america coming together obviously sentences he couldn't conceive of himself. >> yessen he did that last night. it's worth putting into some historical perspective the astonishing nature of what he said about exsheriff joe. think of republican president dwight eisenhower during the desegregation cries in little rock arkansas in 1950s if dwight eisenhower said he was going to pardon any officers who had overtepd imagine in the 19 sixth if they bakted potter for bull connor the people in the
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university of mississippi resisting immigration. a president's job is to speak for the entire country as donald trump tried to do last night as we've said in various ways he is just signaling support for the most divisive, least presidential, least historical moments in the responsibility of this job. so it is. it was said earlier this is we'dish event. we'dish to the nth degree and troubling. >> jennifer rub enin republican circles there is now a larger question apparently by the day. will donald trump be an unchallenged republican nominee as incumbent presidents are unchallenged nominees i'm now told he is talking about the wall and the southern border which we will go to if he talks about that. he recently tried to construct
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at least within the white house they are trying to construct a deal that would include the possibility of getting democratic votes for this by making a deal on dreamers to get congress to pay for the wall. let's listen to what he said about that? if we have to close down or government we're building the wall. let me be very clear to democrats in congress who oppose the berd wall and stand in the way of border security. you are putting all of america safety at risk. you're doing that. you're doing that. again, the border patrol today -- i said how important is the wall to some of the folks? i meet with a lot of them. and they looked at me they said it's vital. it's vital. it's so vital. and you know we have walls. i don't know if you know we're already starting to fix a lot of the walls we already have. >> okay this is a familiar portion of a trump speech. he is obviously working from a teleprompter and then leaving it whenever he wants to expand on
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points. and -- and jennifer reuben, i want to come back to this question of possible republican chlg challengers to the republican president in the next primary. >> if he lasses that long. there is some question whether he is going to wear out his welcome before then or that he is going to have a complete break with reality. i absolutely think there is going to be at least one challenger. listen, if jimmy carter had a challenger and if gerald ford had a challenger this guy is certainly going to have a challenger. and that may come within the party. if that's doesn't work there may be a third party candidate. i think what you're seeing now clearly with the story that surfaced on "the new york times" about mitch mcconnell and his knock out drag out with the president, is that members publicly, brightestly acknowledging that guy is a basket case, he cannot serve, cannot lead the party. my regret is they've been so cowardly for so long and did nothing to stop him and it took
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this long tos whisper in background he was unfit where were the folks seven months ago ten months ago two years ago? but be that as it may to your question i think there will be challengers. and frankly those members of congress who have gone along with him who have enabled him the tom cotton of the world the ted cruz's of the world they're not in a position to challenge him because they've been as bad as he is. you're going to have to look to people who have been critical to him rightfully so. you'll have to look to people like ben sass, john case itch to present another choice. >> as we've been speaking here the president has just said he is willing to shut down or will as he put it shut down the government in order to get congress to pay for the wall. that's another big showdown with mitch mcconnell. >> indeed. i think republicans while they've had stands of principal you could call it over the years in trying to repeal obamacare they have enough tribal memory to recognize that these
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government shutdowns are historically a really losing approach for them. back to the time of newt ginrich when he was doing this with bill clinton. so there was no appetite at least within the republicans in the senate and probably many in the house for again attaching themselves to trump on an issue where they think the public is not with them and the electorate they have to face thap thap. that's another source of cleavage. >> david k. johnston it can be o could be thely shut down the government to pay for the wall is the latest version of mexico will pay for the wall it is at empty a threat. >> absolutely. there is -- as we know know way mexico will pay for the wall and donald's original proposal of a tariff meant we would pay for it. but i would be surprised at this point if anyone in congress certainly mitch mcconnell and paul ryan is going to use up one ounce of political capital to help donald get the wall built. just not going to happen. and tonight in this audience
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look at how he has stirred this crowd up. what's happening when the people go back out into the streets? this is -- we're going to see a pattern i suspect of more of this by donald of stirring crowds up who are his supporters because the unsettling nature of that and the places like open carry states like arizona is going to have an intimidating effect on people. >> and ron clan this is a campaign event, paid for by the trump 2020 campaign. the trump 2020 campaign is raising money it can use for another purpose and that is paying the criminal defense lawyers who are representing donald trump in the various investigationless. and it may be that running this campaign fund and raising this money as he is doing now is actually more important to him today as a defense fund nan it is for paying foreigning halls like this. >> this is the trump university of political campaigns.
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i think he is trying to get people to use these -- this colorful crazy wild language that stirs up the base to get people to write checks that are going to be used to pay for donald jr.'s criminal defense. that's what this is. it's no difference nan the trump university scam except there will be more and more victims all over the country sucked into it and more and more lies. i think it's -- we can never skate past the fact that he said countless times last year that mexico would pay for the wall. he had the crowds chanting mexico would fay pay for the wall now what he is saying all of the government services will shut down unless u.s. taxpayers pay for the wall. the lies continue. the lies moun. as a result the criminal defense bills will mount too. >> toipt thank our guesting for helping us in this life coverage of this presidential speech. i'm not sure we've done it the right way by interrupting the president and pointing out when he is lying. but it is a unique situation to
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have a president go out to the american public like this on live television and lie this way. james fallows david k. johnston. mayor ellen, jennifer thank you. david johnston, thank you for helping us get through this hour. stay with us live because the live coverage of this presidential speech continues into "the 11th hour with brian williams." the breaking news we're covering tonight. donald trump lets it fly in arizona. he reargues his response to cartsville, he launches a huge new attack on media, some by name and in the next sentence insists he loves all the people in our country. he also said there weren't as.protesters outside as promised. when he heads back to washington, there's a problem. "the new york times" reporting the president and his majority leader aren't talking and for now there's no trump legislation moving. il